Time/USA Today Declare Putin Winner Over Obama

President Obama’s bungling of everything surrounding Syria is so apparent that even some of his biggest fans in the mainstream media are finding it impossible to do anything other than declare the obvious. While CNN’s Wolf Blitzer and the New York Times are doing their best to carry Obama’s water, Time and USA Today are pointing to the truth and speaking it out loud: Obama got played by Vladmir Putin.

For the past decade, Russia strove to play a bigger role in global politics, and it’s long seen itself as having a rightful place in shaping the Middle East, even though its sphere of influence is largely limited to Syria and Iran.

If Putin is able to help shepherd a deal that averts U.S. military action, it would be a masterstroke. Even if it doesn’t head off a strike, he may still end up looking good.

The “trust but verify” refrain, adopted as a signature catchphrase by President Reagan during the Cold War, has been used since President Obama endorsed the Russian approach to Syria on Monday night. The U.S.-Russia relationship is seen as a cause for concern across party lines, and a major snag in President Obama’s solving this conflict through a diplomatic option.

Even the left-wing New Republic is aware that “Obama got played by Putin and Assad.” No one should be surprised that the New Republic would oppose Obama’s unilateral war against Syria, but to attack his competence in this way is nothing short of devastating.

As of now, it seems fair to declare as Dead Enders those in the media (like Ezra Klein) still attempting to spin Obama’s weeks-long blunder into Putin’s hands as a “win.”